Welcome to the fantastic book circus that is the YA Scavenger Hunt! For those new to the fun-fest that is YASH, this bi-annual event was first organized by the fabulous Colleen Houck as a way to give readers a chance to gain access to bonus material from their favorite authors … and a chance to win some awesome prizes!

If you came here looking for my bonus material, a teaser from ALPHA GODDESS, you’ll have to keep hunting! This hunt, I am a member of the BLUE team!

At this hunt, you not only get access to exclusive content from each author, you also get a clue for the hunt. Add up the clues, and you can enter for our prize–one lucky winner will receive one signed book from each author on the hunt in my team!But play fast: this contest (and all the bonus material) will only be online until noon PST on Sunday April 7th!

Check out the YA Scavenger Hunt page to find out all about the hunt. There are five contests going on simultaneously, and you can enter one or all! I am a part of the BLUE TEAM–but there are also other fabulous teams for a chance to win a whole different set of signed books!

If you’d like to find out more about the hunt, see links to all the authors participating, and see the full list of prizes up for grabs, OR IF YOU ARE STUCK, go to the YA Scavenger Hunt homepage.

SCAVENGER HUNT PUZZLE

Directions: In my post, you’ll notice that I’ve hidden my favorite number in BLUE somewhere. Collect the favorite numbers of all the authors on each team, and then add them up.

Rules: Open internationally, anyone below the age of 18 should have a parent or guardian’s permission to enter. To be eligible for the grand prize, you must submit the completed entry form by APRIL 7TH, at noon Pacific Time. Entries sent without the correct number or without contact information will not be considered.

Patty Blount grew up quiet and invisible in Queens, NY, but found her superpower writing smart and strong characters willing to fight for what’s right. Today, she’s the award-winning author of edgy, emotional contemporary and young adult romance.

It’s been two years since the night that changed Ashley’s life. Two years since she was raped by her brother’s teammate. And a year since she sat in a court and watched as he was given a slap on the wrist sentence. But the years have done nothing to stop the pain.

It’s been two years of hell for Derek. His family is totally messed up and he and his sister are barely speaking. He knows he handled it all wrong. Now at college, he has to come to terms with what happened, and the rape culture that he was inadvertently a part of that destroyed his sister’s life.

When it all comes to head at Thanksgiving, Derek and Ashley have to decide if their relationship is able to be saved. And if their family can ever be whole again.

Find out more information about this exciting book by checking out PATTY BLOUNT’s website!

In this deleted scene fromSOMEONE I USED TO KNOW, siblings Ashley and Derek Lawrence haven’t been getting along for years but now that they’re once again both in the same school, Ashley still hopes things will improve. She’s been invited to dance on the Fusion squad, and she’s caught the eye of a senior. But when she tells her parents all about the football team’s annual scavenger hunt that makes all the girls at school nervous, they order her brother to sit out the hunt or they’ll bench him for good.

Everything’s about to get a lot worse than it already was.

The reason my editor and I decided to delete the scene is because it clocked in at over 2000 words and that was just a bit much for a flashback. Even though it hit the cutting room floor, it’s a favorite of mine because it shows so much emotion — Ashley’s pure mortification at her brother’s behavior, the sinking sensation that Victor will never ask her out now, and even the desperate sort of hope that maybe her brother’s finally over whatever bug crawled up his butt with her.

The football team ran practice drills in the center of the athletic field. The band, color guard, cheerleading squad and dance team met up under the goal post. We’d all be sharing the field during the half-time show at the Homecoming game and we had to make it perfect. We’d practiced our routines for forty-five minutes already and still had issues.

Tension was thick.

I tugged my Fusion t-shirt away from body, praying it didn’t have pit stains, and ran an arm across my sweaty face. The other girls looked perfect. Candace, with her dark smooth skin, looked luminous when she got hot. Tara didn’t look hot at all. Did she not have sweat glands?

I was sure I looked like a melted Popsicle.

Deanne guzzled from a water bottle, breathing heavily. I shot her a grateful look. At least there was one flawed human in this sea of perfection. She grabbed my elbow and tugged me aside. “Hey. So you actually told your parents about the hunt? Half the football team is gunning for you now.”

My eyes bulged. “What? They’re what?”

“Yeah, you didn’t hear the boys when they took the field before? Brayden said Derek told them all you were off-limits but then Doug said that really means you’re worth double points now. Then he said Sebastian promised Derek he’d look out for you. Is it true that your dad plans to go to the coach?”

Ohgodohgodohgodohgod.

“Ashley? Relax. It’ll be fine. Just tell the guys after practice that you’re cool with it. Flash some boob.” She gave my t-shirt a strong tug, filling the V-neck with cleavage. I quickly readjusted it, hoping nobody had seen.

I was going to kill Derek. Squash him like a bug.

But the drum majorette blew her whistle and once again, we went through our routines, so exterminating my stupid brother would have to wait. Fusion’s big number was a fast-moving, perfectly synchronized hip-hop routine set to a Lady Gaga song. We were halfway through it when a cacophony of whistles, shouts, and cheers brought us to a halt.

I spun around to see what was up to see Derek and Victor throwing fists at each other’s faces. Derek let out a roar as he threw himself at Victor. They hit the turf at the sidelines and slid into a group of players standing there. The coaches stalked over, still blowing their whistles, and pulled Derek off Victor. Victor struggled to his feet and blood poured from his nose.

Victor said something I couldn’t hear but Derek could. He went wild, bucking against the arms holding him back. “You stay away from my sister! Stay the fuck away from her!”

Gasps went up from my friends and they all turned to stare at me, open mouths covered by their hands. “Oh, Ashley. Jesus.”

My stomach churned and my eyes blurred. Why? Why would Derek do this to Victor? He’d been nice to me. That was all. He’d driven me home and been nice to me. Was just being nice to me a federal offense now? I ran across the field, determined to get things straight between my brother and me.

“Ashley, don’t!” Candace called after me.

But I had to. I had to hear it from Derek. I had to know. Sobs exploded from me when I saw Victor’s face. His lip was split and blood still flowed freely from his nose. I grabbed a towel from the bench, pressed it gently to Vic’s face. “I’m sorry! Oh, God, I’m so sorry.”

Derek’s throat worked as swallowed hard. He looked at me and then away.

“Still waiting, Lawrence.”

“He said something about my sister’s chest, sir. I took offense to it.”

Oh my God. I wanted to evaporate. My face burned as all eyes turned to me — to my chest — and I wished I could just disappear into a puff of smoke.

“You took offense. Oh, that clears it all up. You took offense and just decided to pound on a teammate, instead of come to me?”

Derek squirmed, his face going red while he struggled not to mouth off.

“You’re done, Lawrence. Take your gear, get out of here. You’re riding the bench—“

“But Coach!”

“You’re riding the bench until I’m convinced you and Patton can play together without beating each other to a pulp and handing the damn trophy to the other team on a silver platter, is that clear?”

Derek’s shoulders rose as he took another fighting breath.

“I said, is that clear?”

“Yeah.”

“What?”

“Yes. Sir.”

Derek’s blue eyes were bright with hot fury. He wouldn’t even look at me as he stalked back to the entrance, one of the assistant coaches stuck to him like glue. Whistles blew and the coach ordered everybody back to their places.

“Come on, Ashley,” Candace put an arm around me and I realized then that I was shaking like it was below zero instead of eighty degrees.

I stared at Sebastian, one of the boys who’d laughed when I called Derek Leo back on the first day of school. He was tall, taller than Derek, with dark hair and dark eyes. He was also crazy big. Not fat, just broad. Wide. A wall. He was built like a wall. Okay, sure, he had on all his football gear, but so had Derek and Victor and neither of them had been this…solid.

I took a step back. Candace’s arm tightened around me.

Sebastian’s big dark eyes looked hurt for a moment and then they went hard. “Remember what I said.” Then, he jogged off to take his spot on the field.

Candace walked me back to the end zone area. “Ashley, look at me. You said Derek’s been a real jerk to you for a long time, right?”

Tears stung the back of my eyes. I couldn’t talk. I could barely nod.

“He just beat up somebody for looking at your chest. That’s not a jerk thing. That’s a brother thing.”

Oh.

I blinked at her. I hadn’t considered that. I’d just assumed he’d hurt Vic because I liked him. I stared at the door where Derek had disappeared after the coach scolded him. He loved football. Lived for it. Breathed it.

And he’d risked it all because somebody said something about my chest.

I wanted to go to him, hug him, thank him for standing up for me, for showing he still cared about me.

But my feet wouldn’t move.

“Here, honey.” Tara handed me a bottle of water and a tiny package of tissues and oddly, that only made me want to cry more.

“I think we’re done for the day,” Brittany said to nobody in particular. Nobody argued and I was grateful for that.

I sank to the turf and gulped down some water, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. I blew my nose and wished I knew what to do to make all of this just go away, make it all better. “I’m sorry, you guys. I have to go home. I’m really sorry.”

I scrambled to my feet, collected all of my stuff and started walking.

“Ashley, wait. I’ll take you.”

I nodded gratefully while Brittany grabbed her own gear. The rest of the girls waved, called out farewells and five minutes later, Brittany and I were moving.

“I am so seriously sorry,” I whispered.

“No, Ashley. This wasn’t your fault. I mean, not really.”

Not really?

“I get why you told your parents and all. And I totally get why Derek decided not to play. He’s not the only one. A few of the guys won’t play. I actually think it’s pretty cool that your brother beat somebody up for you.” She shrugged and waited for a chance to turn left.

Cool? It really wasn’t. And what the hell did she mean by that not really part?

“It’s not that much longer until the Homecoming game and all of this goes away, so just hang in, okay?”

Sure. I’ll just hang in. No problem.

Brittany drove me all the way home this time, instead of dropping me at Dad’s garage. I stepped inside, the house dark and lonely. I ran upstairs to my room, locked the door, and threw myself on the bed. My phone buzzed. I tugged it out, found a text from Justin.

When’s D’s game? I’m coming home for it.

Awesome. I text him back the date and time and stared at the phone. Justin was a college senior. He didn’t come home too often these days. Busy with school, his various activities, a part time job, and a girlfriend.

Hey, can I ask you a brother question?

I waited for what felt like forever until the phone buzzed again.

Why, Derek not around?

I knew this was a bad idea. I tossed the phone down and threw an arm over my face. Several minutes later, it buzzed again and kept buzzing. The caller ID said Justin.

“Hi.”

“Hey. Figured it was just easier to call than keep texting. It, uh, occurred to me when you didn’t text back that your question was probably about Derek. You and he still not getting along?”

“Uh, definitely not. He can’t even look at me most days. I still have no idea what I did.”

“Ash, you really didn’t do anything. He’s a guy. Sometimes, guys just want to hang with other guys and do guy things. You crowd him.”

“Oh.” I sighed and sat up on my bed, tucking a pillow behind my head so I could lean back. “He got benched today, Justin. He may not play in the big game.”

“What? Why?”

“He um…well, he beat up a guy on the team.”

“Holy shit.”

“Yeah. But that’s not all.” I poured out the whole stupid story to my oldest brother. “So I don’t get it, Justin. I don’t get why he’s mean to me pretty much all the time but then he goes and risks everything to stick up for me? Why?”

“Did you ask him?”

Oh, yeah. Sure. Why didn’t I think of that? “No. That would require talking to me and Derek doesn’t do that.”

“Okay, let me ask you a question and tell me the truth. Why did you join the dance team?”

“Because they asked, Justin. You may not have noticed this before, but I don’t have many friends.”

“Actually, I have noticed this before and you don’t have friends because you wasted too much time and energy trying to make Derek’s friends like you.”

I winced at that. When I said nothing, Justin added, “Truth hurts, right?”

“Shut up.”

“Hey, you asked me, remember? So you joined the dance team because they asked you, even though he asked you not to. But you don’t see how this could upset him?”

“Justin, he didn’t ask. He ordered.”

“Semantics, Ash. You’re still trying to make his friends yours and it’s wrong. I get that you two were best buddies and all that when you were little, but you’re not little anymore. You have to respect that now.”

I squirmed and tried to deny it, but all of this was uncomfortably true. “Okay, maybe dancing started out that way. Maybe I did say yes just to piss him off, but I really like it, Justin. I’m good at it. And the girls like me. At least, they did.”

“Ash, I don’t know what to tell you. It sounds to me that Derek defended you. The least you could do is thank him for that and get the hell out of his way, like he’s been asking you to do for years now.”

Oh.

“Yeah.” I sighed loudly. For years now. And I never listened.

Sweet Jesus, Derek could be kicked off the football team and it would be my fault.

To enter the contest, you need to know that my favorite number is hidden somewhere in this post (hint: scroll up two lines – it’s in blue and it starts with THIR and ends with TEEN). Add up all the favorite numbers of the authors on the blue team and you’ll have all the secret code to enter for the grand prize!

While you’re here with me, be sure to enter the personal contest I’m hosting below for a chance to win signed books (including both books in the award-winning INDIE NEXTALPHA GODDESS series).

Melanie

Marlen

April 4, 2019 at 9:45 am (1 year ago)

Hmmm my first response would’ve been supernatural romance, but then again…there are already several books out there. Some I’ve enjoyed, some not so much. It’s getting to the point that even friends who don’t like to read know the ending :/ so I’d say more historical romance, adventure, books with characters that have medical conditions, or fantasy!

Destiny Carroll

Nicole Buchholz

April 3, 2019 at 12:55 am (1 year ago)

I love reading about post apocalyptic or mythology (any type, Greek, Norse, Roman, etc) in YA fiction. And yes, I know, they are total opposites of the spectrum but that’s what I love about YA is there is so much to chose from!

Grace

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Comment *

Name*

Email *

Website

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Newsletter

Sign up to receive my latest news, events, and giveaways!

Email address:

Leave this field empty if you're human:

About The Author

AMALIE HOWARD grew up on a small Caribbean island where she spent most of her childhood with her nose buried in a book or running around barefoot, shimmying up mango trees, and dreaming of adventure. 25 countries, surfing with sharks, and several tattoos later, she has traded in bungee jumping in China for writing the adventures she imagines instead. She isn’t entirely convinced which takes more guts.